Curb and gutter slip form



June 25, 1968 N. T. RUGGLES 3,389,646

CURB AND GUTTER SLIP FORM Filed April 26, 1965 .fnaew tor Harman Tfiugy/es United States Patent 3,389,646 CURB AND GUTTER SLIP FORM Norman T. Ruggles, 1418 E. Pacific Coast Hwy., Wilmington, Calif. 90744 Filed Apr. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 450,853 5 Claims. (CI. 94-46) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A slip form for establishing concrete curbs and gutters on a prepared bed comprising, an elongate framework with front and rear ends, inner and outer sides, and top and bottom planes, said framework including an elongate inner form board having a laterally outwardly disposed curb back forming surface, a top screed edge and a bottom edge, an elongate outer form board having a laterally inwardly disposed gutter edge forming surface, a top screed edge and a bottom edge, said inner and outer form boards being in lateral spaced, parallel relationship with their bottom edges in a common plane, the top screed edge of the outer form board being on a plane spaced below the plane in which the top screed edge of the inner form board occurs, an intermediate form board having a laterally inwardly disposed curb face forming surface, a top screed edge and a bottom edge with a laterally outwardly projecting screed flange, said intermediate form board being arranged in spaced, parallel relationship between the inner and outer form boards with its top screed edge in a common plane with the top screed edge of the inner form board and with the screed flange at its bottom edge in a common plane with the top screed edge of the outer form board, a plurality of longitudinally spaced, transversely extending support means arranged in spaced relationship above the several form boards and having means fixed to said form boards to hold said boards in fixed, predetermined relationship with each other, said related form boards being adapted to accommodate and to be slidably supported by a, slurry of concrete, and guide means to support and direct the several related form boards when the structure is shifted longitudinally forwardly relative to the bed and to the mass of concrete slurry, and including a pair of elongate, horizontally disposed and laterally spaced guide rails in fixed, spaced relationship from the form boards and having straight, longitudinally extending bottom edges to slidably engage carrier means arranged in predetermined position on the bed and in advance of the slip form structure.

This invention has to do with a slip form and is more particularly concerned with a novel slip form for establishing concrete curbs and gutters.

The ordinary or conventional curb and gutter includes a longitudinally extending icurb member or portion having substantially vertically extending inner and outer surfaces, a fiat, upwardly disposed top surface and a downwardly bed-engaging bottom. The ordinary curb and gutter structure further includes a gutter skirt or member formed integrally with and projecting laterally inwardly from the lower portion of the inner surface of the curb portion and defining a fiat, substantially upwardly disposed top surface, an inwardly disposed edge, and a bed-engaging bottom. The top surface of the gutter portion is adapted to be flush with the surface of a sidewalk or terrain adjacent the roadbed.

It is common practice to establish a curb such as is set forth above, a section at a time, by arranging and supporting form boards to define the front and rear surfaces of the curb and the inner edge of the gutter portion. The form boards are supported by suitable stakes 3,38%,646 Patented June 25, 1968 driven into the bed over which the curb and gutter is to be formed and are carefully positioned by suitable surveying techniques. A stiif slurry of cement is poured between the form boards and onto the bed. The deposit of slurry is leveled off at the topscreed edges of the boards by a suitable roding operation and is permitted to set up to a desired consistency, whereupon the boards are removed and the concrete is suitable finished.

Upon removal of the form boards, they are moved axially, or longitudinally, of the roadbed and set up again preparatory to forming the next section of curb and gutter.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that considerable time and effort is required to establish a curb and gutter structure and that great skill must be exercised to establish such a structure straight and accurately. 1

Many eliorts have been made to provide special machines for carrying out the above operation, but such machines have been extermely complicated and are so costly to purchase, operate and maintain, that they are completely impractical for small concrete contractors and are of questionable practicalness for large concrete contractors.

An object of the present invention is to provide a novel slip form construction for establishing curb and gutter structure which is such that a curb and gutter structure can be advantageously continuously and accurately established.

A further object of this invention is to provide a slip form for the purpose set forth above, which is extremely simple, economical to manufacture and maintain, and which does not require the exercise of any special skill to operate.

An object of my invention is to provide for the arrangement and holding of the several form boards required to establish a curb and gutter structure in fixed predetermined relationship, whereby the several boards can be advantageously shifted longitudinally as a unit and in a manner to act as floats, as a curb and gutter structure is established.

Still another object of this invention, is to provide guide means at one end of the related form boards to project in a direction in which the curb and gutter is to be established, which means serves to counterbalance the mass of the form boards and serves to maintain the leading ends of the related form boards in proper predetermined vertical and lateral position and so that the direction in which the curb and gutter structure is established can be advantageously maintained.

The various objects and features of my invention will be fully understood from the following detailed description of a typical preferred form and application of my invention, throughout which description reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric 'view of va curb and gutter structure;

FIG. 2 is an isometric view of my new construction;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken as indicated by line 33 on FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken as indicated by line 4-4 011 FIG. 2; and,

FIG. 5 is a view showing a portion of my construction with flexing means related thereto.

The slip form A provided by the present invention is adapted to establish a concrete curb and gutter structure B, such as is illustrated in FIG. 1 of the drawings, and which is commonly provided along the side edges of and defines a paved roadway.

The structure B is an elongate, unitary structure of molded concrete, and includes a curb portion having a fiat, horizontally disposed top 10, flat, inner and outer surfaces 11 and 12, and a bottom 13. The bottom 13 en- 3 gages and is supported by a prepared and graded bed 14 on which the structure is established. The inner surface 11 is substantially vertical, but, in practice, can, as illustrated, be pitched or inclined upwardly and outwardly slightly. The outer surface 12, as illustrated, is inclined upwardly and inwardly.

The structure B further includes a substantially flat, gutter portion formed integrally with and projecting laterally inwardly from the lower edge portion of the curb portion 10.

The gutter portion has a flat top 16, straight, fiat, vertical, outwardly disposed outer edge 17 and a bottom 18.

The bottom 18, like the bottom 13 of the curb portion, is supported on the bed 14.

The top 16 is normally pitched or inclined in the direction of the fall of the road or pavement with which the structure is related and is adapted to occur in a common plane with the surface of the road or pavement. In the drawings, the dotted line Z indicates the plane on which the surface of the road or pavement will occur.

The several corners established by the surfaces 17, 16, 12, and 1.1 are rounded or radiused to eliminate the establishment of sharp, dangerous and fragile corners.

The form A includes three elongate form boards, there being an inner form board 20 to establish the inner surface 11 of a curb, an intermediate form board 21 to establish the outer surface 12 of the curb and the inner edge portion of the top surface 16 of the gutter portion and an outer form board 22 to establish the outer edge of the gutter portion and the outer edge portion of the top surface 16 thereof.

The several boards can be established of wood planks, plywood or any other suitable stock.

The upper edge portions of the boards 20, 21 and 22 are provided with sheet metal, screed and corner forming strips 23, which strips are in the nature of angle sections having fiat, top screed flanges 24 engaging and fixed to the top edges of their related forming boards and projecting laterally therefrom and curved or radiused, downwardly and laterally inwardly inclined forming flanges 25, the lower edges of which engage and are suitably fastened to the forming surfaces of their related forming boards.

The lower edges of the several forming boards are provided with an elongate, longitudinally extending, sheet metal shoes having a fiat, horizontally disposed flangelike base portions 26 which overlie the bottom edges of the boards, and are fixed to the bottom edges of the boards, and project laterally from one of the side edges thereof, and upwardly turned inner edge portions 27, which portions wrap about the lower edges of the boards.

The base portion 26 of the shoe on the central form board 21 projects laterally outwardly and serves as a float to establish the inner edge portion of the top surface .16 of the gutter portion and the edge portion is curved or radiused and establishes the radiused corner between the top surface 16 of the gutter portion and the outer surface 12 of the curb portion.

The portion of the top surface of the base portion 26 of the shoe of the central form board 21 which projects outwardly from the board establishes a screed rod or board supporting surface, as clearly illustrated in FIG. 2 of the drawings.

The base portion of the shoe on the board projects laterally outwardly therefrom and the base portion of the shoe on the board 22 projects laterally inwardly. The base portions of the shoes on the inner and outer boards establish vanes which engage below the slurry of cement at the edge portions thereof and serve to hold the form down, preventing it from floating or otherwise rising or elevating.

The several boards are held in fixed predetermined spaced relationship with each other by a plurality of like, longitudinally spaced support means 30. Each support means includes an elongate, horizontally disposed beam 31 extending transverse the longitudinal axis of the construction and in spaced relationship above the boards. The means 39 further includes elongate, vertically disposed legs 32 at the ends of the beams and depending therefrom, and an elongate, vertically disposed central leg 33 depending from the central portion of the beam.

The several legs 32 and 33 are provided with laterally inwardly projecting feet 34 at their lower ends, which feet engage and are suitably fixed to the outer surfaces of the forming boards, intermediate the upper and lower edges thereof.

It will be apparent that the legs are spaced laterally from and are clear of the upper or top screed edges of the boards so that screed or leveling rods or boards, such as are indicated at X and Y can be advantageously drawn along and between the top screed edges of the boards 20 and 21 and the top screed edge of the board 22 and the top screed surface of the flange 26 of the shoe at the lower edge of the board 21 and in such a manner as t level the top surface of a slurry of cement deposited between the boards and to establish the top surfaces 10 and 16 of the curb and gutter.

In practice, the support means can be established in any desired manner, for example, and as illustrated, they can be established of steel tubing suitably bent and fabricated. The feet 34 are established by inwardly turned 01 bent extensions of the legs and are provided with fiat, mounting plates 36 welded to the free ends of the feet. The plates 36 are secured to their related boards by screw fasteners 37.

My new form construction further includes elongate guide rails 40 projecting longitudinally from one end of the form boards 26 and 22, said one end of the form boards being the front or meeting end.

The guide rails 40 are in the nature of elongate, horizontally disposed extensions of the form boards 21 and 22 and, as illustrated, are integrally joined with their related forming boards.

The guide rails 40 have straight, longitudinally extending bottom edges, which edges are provided with strap metal runners 42 throughout the greater part of their longitudinal extent.

The rear end portions of the runners adjacent the forward ends of their related form boards are relieved or notches along their lower edge portions, as at 43, so that the structure disengages supporting means for the structure, at predetermined times, as will hereinafter be described.

The guide rails 40 are maintained in spaced parallel relationship with each other by a plurality of longitudinally spaced spreaders 44, fixed to and extending between the rails.

In addition to the foregoing, the structure includes a suitable towing harness H fixed to and extending forward from the forward ends of the rails, which harness can be connected with a suitable towing vehicle, or the like, and facilitates towing or advancing the construction when it is in operation.

In practice, it is frequently desired that the curb and gutter be curved about a large radius.

It will be apparent that my structure is such that it can be advantageously flexed or bowed, longitudinally in a horizontal plane so as to facilitate the establishment of a curved curb and gutter structure.

To facilitate flexing and holding the construction in a flexed condition, I provide an elongate sectional tie rod T, the section .9 of which are connected by a centrally arranged turnbuckle 50.

Laterally inwardly projecting form board or guide rail engaging standards 51 are carried by the tie rod T adjacent each end of the turnbuckle 50 and serve to hold the central portion of the rod and turnbuckle in spaced relationship from the outer surface of the form board and rail with which the rod is related.

The ends of the rod are provided with hooks 52 t0 engage the end of their related form board and guide rail. The hooks can be formed by handing the free ends of the rod sections.

The ends of the form boards and guide rails can e provided with apertured anchor plates 53 to cooperatively receive the hooks. I i

In practice, the rod is engaged in the nature of an attachment and can be applied to either side of the construction, as circumstances require.

It will be apparent that when the rod is applied to one side of the construction and the turnbuckle is tightened, the construction is suitably flexed and bowed about a desired radius. L

The beams 31 of the support 34 and the spreaders 44 between the guide rails, are established with sufficient flexibility and are so spaced that they will bend and yield sufficiently when the structure is flexed longitudinally in the manner set forth above, so that the lateral spacing'of the form boards and guide rails will remain parallel at all times.

If a radius is desired which is tighter or shorter than can be effected in the manner set forth above, the points of connection between the'pads 36 and their related form boards and between the ends of the spreaders 44 and their related guide rails, at or along one side of the construction, and the points of connection between the support means 30 and the intermediate form board 21, must be altered. While this is not desirable, such adjustment is not difficult and/or time-consuming. If desired, special fastener receiving openings, for the fasteners 37 and for the fasteners engaging the ends of the spreaders 44, can be provided as indicated.

In practice, the form boards can be about feet in length and the guide rails can be about 15 feet in length, with the result that the overall length of the construction is about 30 feet. The construction, as set forth in this invention, and about 30 feet in length, is extremely pracical since it is not so long or so heavy as to be difiicult and inconvenient to handle and manipulate by three or four men, and is such that it can be easily and convenientl transported from one job site to another on a light truck or trailer.

In operation, bed 14 on which the curb and gutter structure is to be formed is established by suitable grading and surveying operations.

Suitable posts or stakes 60 are driven into the bed in pairs and in predetermined longitudinal spaced rela tionship.

In practice, for example, the pairs of posts are spaced about five feet apart, longitudinally of the bed 14.

The posts of each pair of posts are spaced apart laterally, a sufiicient distance to freely accommodate the form construction.

An elongate, horizontally disposed carrier bar 61 is fixed to and extends between each pair of posts to occur in predetermined, spaced relationship above the bed 14 and so as to establish sliding bearing and supporting engagement with the runners 42 on the guide rails, as the construction is shifted or towed longitudinally of the bed.

In practice, the carrier bars 61 are releasably secured to the posts 60 by suitable fastening means 62 and in accordance with conventional concrete construction procedures, and tehniques.

Initially, a pair of posts with a support bar are arranged at and beneath the rear end of the construction to hold the rear end at desired elevation above the bed.

A still slurry of cement is then deposited between the form boards and the top surface thereof is struck level by the screed rods X and Y.

After the form is initially charged or filled with cement in the above manner, the form is continuously towed and shifted longitudinally forwardly and cement is continuously introduced between the form boards at the forward portions thereof. As this continuous introduction of cement takes place, the top surfaces of the curb and gutter are struck level by the screed rods X and Y.

When the rails advance to a position where a support bar 61 occurs adjacent the notches 43 they no longer bear on the bar, permitting easy and convenient removal of the bar and its related posts. The bar and posts thus removed can be carried forwardly, along the prepared bed 14 and are re-set. Accordingly, a limited number of posts and bars are required. I

The slump of the cement slurry is maintained so that the form will not sink into a slurry.

The downwardly divergent surfaces of the forming boards 20 and 21, the corner forming strips 24 at the upper edges of the several boards and which overlie the top edges of the concrete mass, and the shoe along the bottom edge of the central forming board 21, all serve to support the form on the cement and prevent the construction from settling or sinking into the cement.

In practice, if the slump of the cement should be too high and the form starts or tends to sink, suitable counter balance weights W can be provided at the forward end of the construction, that is, onthe forward most spreader 44, reducing the effective weight of the forming boards and their related parts on the cement mass. In practice, however, the use of such weights is not required as the weight and longitudinal extent of the rails and their related spreaders can be made to counterbalance the remainder of the construction so that it will function properly and will not sink into slurries of standard slump.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that I have provided a simple and inexpensive, yet highly effective and dependable slip form for establishing curbs and gutters.

Having described only a typical preferred form and application of my invention, I do not wish to be limited or restricted to the specific details herein set forth, wish to reserve to myself any variations or modifications that may appear to those skilled in the art and fall within the scope of the following claims.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A slip form for establishing concrete curbs and gutters on a prepared bed comprising, an elongate framework with front and rear ends, inner and outer sides and top and bottom planes and including, an elongate, inner form board having a flat, outwardly disposed, inner curb face forming surface, straight, longitudinally extending top and bottom edges, an elongate outer form board having a flat, inwardly disposed, outer gutter edge forming surface and straight, longitudinally extending top and bottom edges, said outer form board being in lateral spaced, parallel relationship with the inner form board and with its bottom edge in a common plane with the bottom edge of the inner form board, the top edge of the outer form board being on a plane spaced below the plane in which the top edge of the inner form board occurs, an intermediate form board having a flat, substantially laterally inwardly disposed, outer curb face forming surface and straight, longitudinally extending top and bottom edges, said intermediate form board being arranged in spaced, parallel relationship between the inner and outer form boards with its top edge in a common plane with the top edge of the inner form board and with its bottom edge in a common plane with the top edge of the outer form board, the top edges of the several boards defining screed edges, the bottom edge of the intermediate board having a laterally outwardly projecting flange defining a longitudinally extending upwardly disposed screed edge, screed rods between the screed edges of the inner and outer boards and their related screed edges of the intermediate board, a plurality of longitudinally spaced, transversely extending support means arranged in spaced relationship above the several form boards and having means fixed to said form boards 7 remote from the forming surfaces and screed edges thereof to hold said boards in fixed, predetermined relationship with each other, said related form boards being adapted to accommodate and to be slidably supported by a slurry of concrete, and guide means to support and direct the several related form boards when the structure is shifted longitudinally forwardly relative to the bed and to the mass of concrete slurry, and including forward longitudinal extensions on the inner and outer form boards defining a pair of elongate, horizontally disposed and laterally spaced guide rails having straight, longitudinally extending bottom edges to slidably engage carrier means arranged in predetermined position on the bed and in advance of the slip form structure.

2. A structure as set forth in claim 1, including, a longitudinally extending, laterally outwardly projecting vane at the bottom edge of the inner form board and a longitudinally extending, laterally inwardly projecting vane at the bottom edge of the outer form board, said vanes adapted to occur below the lower edge portions of the mass of concrete slurry and to prevent the structure from floating or rising upwardly relative thereto.

3. A structure as set forth in claim 1, including, elongated members at and along the upper, inner edges of the outer and central form boards and the upper outer edge of the inner form board and defining upwardly and laterally turned corner forming surfaces, said members overlying the upper edge portions of the mass of concrete slurry and serving to prevent the structure from sinking into said slurry.

4. A structure as set forth in claim 1, including, a longitudinally extending, laterally outwardly projecting vane at the bottom edge of the inner form board and a longitudinally extending, laterally inwardly projecting vane at the bottom edge of the outer form board, said vanes adapted to occur below the lower edge portions of the mass of concrete slurry and to prevent the structure from floating or rising upwardly relative thereto, an elongate member at the upper, inner edge of the outer and central form board, and the upper, outer edge of the inner form board, then defining upwardly and laterally turned corner forming surfaces, said members overlying the upper edge portions of the mass of concrete slurry and serving to prevent the structure from sinking into said slurry.

5. A structure as set forth in claim 1, including, elongate members at and along the upper, inner edges of the outer and central form boards, and the upper, outer edge of the inner form board and defining upwardly and laterally turned corner forming surfaces, said members overlying the upper edge portions of the mass of concrete slurry and serving to prevent the structure from sinking into said slurry, said flange comprising an elongate shoe member along the bottom edge of the central form board and defining an upwardly and laterally inwardly turned corner forming surface at the inner corner edge of the form board and projecting laterally outwardly from the bottom edge of the central form board to establish said screed edge.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 940,061 11/ 1909 Ransome 94-46 1,637,998 8/1927 Heltzel 94-46 X 2,664,794 1/1954 Evans 94-46 2,932,875 4/1960 Butcher 94-46 X 2,976,783 3/1961 Perkins 94-46 X CHARLES E. OCONNELL, Primary Examiner.

JACOB L. NACKENOFF, Examiner. 

